Exploration and production of hydrocarbons generally requires the use of various tools that are lowered into a borehole, such as drilling assemblies, measurement tools and production devices (e.g., fracturing tools). Electronic components may be disposed downhole for various purposes, such as control of downhole tools, communication with the surface and storage and analysis of data. Such electronic components typically include printed circuit boards (PCBs) that are packaged to provide protection from downhole conditions, including temperature, pressure, vibration and other thermo-mechanical stresses.
Conventional approaches for PCB packaging in drill collar or other downhole components include solid-molded subassemblies, and mounted and bolted subassemblies. Solid molded subassemblies generally use a potting material to fill an electronic assembly. Mounted subassemblies are generally assembled by hard mounting a PCB assembly with grommet insert screws directly from the circuit board into a drill collar pocket-bottom.